Catch Me If You Can: Sequel to Lessons of Life
by Pukkina
Summary: Lisa is forced to set aside her femaledriven emotions in order to protect herself and her children on her quest to escape Jackson Rippner...
1. Love Isn't An Issue Anymore

1By the time the babies were three years old, Lisa was utterly exhausted. Jackson began to come home from work disgruntled. When Lisa would inquire why he was so upset, he would either wave it off or blame it on a finicky customer. Lisa worried about him, and his well-being.

One day Jackson came home in a flurry of slamming doors. Lisa quickly set the babies down in their cribs, flicked off the light and left the room.

"That's it," he muttered. "I'm through with that goddamn hotel."

"Jackson?" Lisa murmured quietly. "You okay?"

"I quit today, Leese," Jackson stated. "I don't know how you did it."

"It's okay, some people just aren't cut out to do that sort of work," Lisa consoled him, secretly sad that he hadn't stuck with it. She moved to him.

"I'm going back to my old corporation," he stated. "It's what I should be doing."

Lisa shrank back and shook her head. "Jackson, you can't," she cried. "No, it would be too dangerous, for us, for the babies.."

"Lisa, this is what I am meant to be doing," he yelled. "It's what I feel most comfortable at."

"You feel comfortable killing people?" she asked him. "I'm sorry, but that is screwed up."

"Lisa, if you love me, you'll let me do this," he told her, his eyes cold.

She paused. "You go back, me and the babies are gone," her voice was a whisper with a deathly serious tone.

"Sure," he laughed a cold laugh, not believing her. Lisa moved to her room, fighting back hot, angry tears.

She pulled a suitcase from the closet and began throwing clothes and other belongings in it. She yanked another one out for the babies and moved to their room. Jackson stared at her.

"Lisa," he told her. "We had a deal." She glared at him.

"My deal was to marry you," she told him angrily. "You didn't specify what happened after."

He grabbed her arm. "You're forgetting one thing, Leese. There are eyes everywhere."

She wrenched away from him. "I'm not scared."

Lisa filled the suitcase, Jackson still trying to talk her out of it with threats. She picked up the babies and their bags and walked out to the long driveway. It would be pointless to take one of his cars, since he would just have one more excuse to come after them.

Jackson let her walk to the end of the driveway. He watched her from the window. Lisa would be back, he told himself. She's in love with me, and she can't legally keep the kids from me.

He told himself that this was all her fault, and that he didn't really care if she came back or not. But secretly he was fighting the feeling that he wanted her to stay.


	2. TimeShares and PlayDoh Ingestion

1Lisa ran to the edge of the driveway, and, setting down Athena and Jacob, hailed a taxi. She settled the kids into the seat and rattled off an address. "Blossom Palms Lane."

Lisa sat back in the seat and soon they arrived in front of her old house. She helped the three-year-olds out and knocked on the door after paying the cabbie.

"Miss," he said before he pulled away. "You all right?"

"I'm fine," Lisa bit off the words as the door opened.

"Dad," she said. Her father looked at her bags and the kids, and let her in.

Lisa settled the kids in the living room with some Play-Doh and her father guided her to sit at the table.

"Leese," he said softly. "What happened?"

"I..." she began, too ashamed of herself even to speak. Her father took her hand. "I'm an idiot, Dad...I let myself believe that he'd changed, that he cared about us...that he was better...but I was wrong. He left the hotel and is working with those assassins again, that bastard," she said quietly.

"Why?" her father asked.

"He likes it better there...I should have known...he has the blood of a killer," she cried. "I told him...if he went back, I would leave."

"So I see," Joe said, his temper flaring up with anger at Lisa's husband.

"He's going to come back, though...I can't stay here, you can't stay here, he has eyes everywhere and he'll be angry," she said, standing up and pacing the floor. "He's changed back to the brutal Jackson, he won't stop...go to Marielle's or something, I need to get out of Miami, out of Florida...oh, shit! Mom, he'll get her, and Cynthia! Oh, I need to call the school..."

"Lisa, they're not going to target your school," her father consoled her, as the phone rang. Lisa stared at it as if it were about to attack, and then grabbed it.

"H-hello?"

"Yes, this is Tucker Matthews from TimeShares International. Would you be interested in buying one of our beautiful properties?" Lisa breathed and gave her dad the thumbs-up signal. She thought, TimeShares...a place for me and the kids to live...yeah...

"Sure," she said as her father stood to make coffee.

"Good to see you've moved on, Leese," the too-familiar voice snarled over the telephone. Lisa screamed. "No one is safe, unless you come home now...your dad isn't safe even with Marielle, you can't run, Leese," the voice was singsong now. "Oh, by the way, you may want to check on the kids before Jacob swallows the Play-Doh."

Lisa slammed down the phone and ran to her son, who had something blue dangling from his mouth.

"Don't eat that thing," she scolded him, then ran back to her father.

"We need to get out of here," she told him. He nodded. "Do you have any clothes I can borrow? Oh, can I use the car, too?" He nodded again and left the room.

"Please, Dad, just...hide in the closet or something until I call and say I'm far away...make them think no one's home. We're being tracked. I'll call you once I get to wherever I'm headed. Call Mom and Cynthia on your cell to tell them to look out, and when it's clear go somewhere but DON'T GO to Marielle's." Lisa took the clothes he gave her, changed, and pulled her hair into a Yankees cap. She grabbed the kids and got ready to jump in the car.

"Thanks," she told her father, and sped off to the airport.


	3. Give Me a Ticket for an Aeroplane

1Lisa seated herself on the plane with either of her children around her as the plane took off. She grabbed at their hands, but they remained unmoved as the plane rocked through the turbulence. Lisa stared at them. Apparently they hadn't inherited her phobia of flying.

"Mommy," Athena asked as soon as they reached cruising altitude, "Where we goin'? And where is Daddy?"

"Well, sweetie," Lisa paused, thinking. "We're going on vacation! For a long time! Doesn't that sound like fun! Daddy...has to work."

"Yay, v'cation!" Jacob cried, then grew solemn. "I miss Daddy though."

Lisa's heart ached at those words. It was obvious that her children needed a father, but she sure as hell wouldn't let the man who just as easily gave them up for dead be theirs.

Lisa found herself drifting off to sleep, and woke up about an hour later. She jolted awake as the plane hit a small spot of turbulence. She looked to her side, only to see that Athena wasn't there.

"Jake?" Lisa asked, the panic rising in her chest. "Honey, where is your sister?"

Jacob shrugged and continued playing with his SpiderMan action figures. Lisa unbuckled and took off down the aisle, nearly colliding with a flight attendant.

"Miss, you need to stay in your seat-" the flight attendant began, but Lisa ignored her.

_Come on, baby, where are you? _Her breathing was shallow and rapid as she searched the seats. Her last thought was to look in the bathroom, and when she slammed open the door, she found Athena standing on the toilet seat, splashing her Barbie doll around in a sink full of water.

"Athena," her mother said, breathing and picking her up. "Don't run off like that, honey, Mommy was so worried."

Athena vaguely nodded and pointed to the sink . "Look, Mommy, it's Barbie beach party!"

Lisa sighed and carried her back to her seat.

The rest of the flight was uneventful, but as Lisa guided the children off the plane, her eyes darted nervously around for anyone who might be a threat. Anyone with brown hair or blue eyes received an especially long stare and a scowl. Anyone who looked sideways at them instantly looked away from the look on Lisa's face.

By the next week, Lisa was settled in an apartment in San Francisco. She'd found a respectable daycare for the twins and she found a decent job at the public school downtown. Lisa still saw a threat in every person they saw, but eventually she lightened up a bit.

One day, Lisa was checking her mailbox at the school when something brown slid out. She picked it up, and covered her mouth to hold back her scream.

It was the brown scarf that Jackson had used to cover his pen wound. Blood spotted the inside and a note slithered to the ground. Lisa picked it up.

_Just wanted you to know what humans are capable of, _it read. Lisa dropped the note and scarf in the garbage can and raced back to the apartment.

Joe Reisert's phone rang about midnight the next night.

"Hello?" he answered it, annoyed.

"It's me, Dad. I'm in New York."


	4. Lisa's New Life

1Lisa once again settled into her new home, new job, new daycare. She figured she'd thrown Jackson off for a while, and was happy when the twins stopped asking where their daddy was.

Lisa had had a really exhausting day that Friday, so was as shocked as ever when the history teacher came up to her in the mailroom.

"Lisa?" he asked uncomfortably. "Hi."

"Hi, Leo," she smiled at him. He was known by all the students as "the cool teacher" and by all the female students as "the hot teacher". He was very cute, Lisa noted.

"I-um, was just wondering," he said shyly. Lisa loved that about him. "Do you want to get dinner with me tonight? I know it's short notice, I...was kind of too shy to ask before. You are so pretty, and so sweet."

Lisa smiled, about to say yes, but then paused. She'd never been able to trust a man other than her father before.

"I-um, my kids," she said simply.

"My daughter Becky is sixteen, she can watch them," he offered eagerly, not wanting to let her slip away.

Lisa still didn't know. Legally, she was still bound to Jackson, and still contemplating her feelings for him.

_He's gone, Lisa, _she told herself. _You won't ever see him again, and you deserve some time to yourself._

"Sure," she answered Leo, smiling.

That night at eat, Lisa's doorbell rang. Lisa left her kids with Leo's responsible daughter and let him take her out.

They went to a casual family restaurant. Lisa enjoyed the change in atmosphere from the places Jackson brought her, and soon she found herself telling Leo everything that had occurred in the past six years. His eyes widened, but Lisa stood her ground. She figured that if he didn't flee, but instead helped her work through this, then he was the guy for her.

"That is horrible," he said, shaking his head. "What a jackass. All that stuff on the plane...now this. You never should have trusted him."

"I know," Lisa sighed at his statement of the obvious. "He's...horrible. I don't even think he cares about his own children anymore. I have to watch everywhere I turn."

Leo nodded as he brought her home. When he reached her doorstep, he kissed her goodnight on the cheek. Lisa fell asleep happy.

When she went back to school the next week, they ate lunch together everyday. Lisa drew glares from the female student body. Lisa drove home Friday afternoon, mentally picking out her outfit for their date Saturday. As she pulled up to the daycare, the teacher, Nina, greeted her warmly.

"Hi, Lisa," she said kindly to her.

"Hi Nina," Lisa answered, looking around at the brightly colored playroom. "How where they today?"

Nina smiled. "They were wonderful. Your husband was proud as could be of them when he picked them up."

"My husband?" Lisa tensed. "I don't have a husband."

"But-he had the same last name," Nina frowned. "Looked the same-"

Lisa didn't hear the last part as she bolted home.

_Please, please, be Leo, _she prayed as she unlocked her door.

Lisa opened the door and gasped, trying to comprehend what she saw.


	5. Friend With Toys

1Jackson. Twins. Twins sleeping on his lap.

"Hold on," he smiled cockily at her as he carried them to their room and shut the door behind him.

Lisa stood frozen against the door when he returned.

"Nice place," he sneered. "Nice guy, too. Shame I had to kill him."

Lisa let out a strangled cry and made a run for the twins' room. Jackson stopped her by shooting out his arm and pushing her against the wall.

"You asshole!" she screamed, flailing out. He slapped a hand over her mouth.

"Sh, Leese," he whispered. "Wouldn't want to scare the kids, now would we?"

She pulled his hand away. "Since when do you care about the kids?" He covered her mouth yet again and rolled his eyes.

"Moved on awfully quick, huh?" he said, taking away his hand as she let the tears fall, but still pinning her to the wall. She glared at him.

"I swear to god, if you hurt him..."

"Don't worry, Leese," he consoled her. "I didn't. But someone else might have. Now shut up."

"You think you're so clever," he told her mockingly. "Move away, new job, new life. Doesn't cut it, though, Leese. I still want you, I love you, and you can't win. Thought I had proved that to you with the little present I left. So give up this little charade. I'm going to be an assassin, you're going to be my wife, so get used to it. You love me, so why bother? I really don't see the problem."

"You have kids, you fucking moron," she hissed. "How the hell do you expect to be a father to them, a husband to me, then go kill someone the next morning?"

"First of all, I don't kill people, I manage their deaths," he smirked. "Second of all, I'm a great multi-tasker."

"They'll get hurt," she explained slowly.

"No, they won't," he replied, sighing. "But they will if you don't stop trying to be the hero."

Lisa stared at him. His own kids?

"Now, here's the deal," he told her. "You can come back with me and the kids to Miami, and the assassin outside your Mom's house in Dallas goes away. Or..." he paused for dramatic effect.

"You stay here, I take the kids, your parents die, and I come back for you later, leaving the twins with my associate with a lot of...well, let's just call them toys, shall we?"

Lisa cried out loud. "I'm not fucking going anywhere with you," she whispered angrily.

"Daddy?" a little voice said from the doorway. Jackson quickly released his grip on Lisa and turned.

"Yes, Athena, what is it sweetheart?" he asked sweetly, scooping her up in his arms. _Dick,_ Lisa thought.

"Guess what?" he asked her excitedly. "We're going on a trip! You, me, and Jacob! We're going back to Florida, where you can meet my best friend who has a lot of toys!"

"Yay!" Athena cried. "Is Mommy coming?"

"I don't know," Jackson turned and smiled at Lisa. "Is Mommy coming?"

Lisa swallowed hard. "Yes, honey, of course."

"Go pack," Jackson told Athena. She ran off happily. Lisa glared at him.

"You, too," he ordered, cocking his head. She fought back her tears as she left the room.


	6. The Apple Doesn't Fall Far From the Tree

1They boarded the plane within the hour and Athena ran up to her father.

"Daddy," she told him, pointing. "I'm gonna sit up front with Jacob, kay?"

"Sure, sweetie, go ahead," he smiled at her. He had bought four seats, two in front of the other on the plane to Miami.

"No, honey, someone should probably sit with you-" Lisa began, desperate not to have to sit with Jackson.

"Go ahead, Athena," Jackson cut her off with his usual grin.

Lisa stared out the window of the plane and bit her lip, trying to devise a plan.

Suddenly Jacob ran up to them. "Mommy?" he cried, bouncing back and forth. "I'm bored."

Lisa didn't answer him at first. "I don't have an idea of something for you to do," she sighed. "Go sit down; I'll try to think of a game you can play."

Jackson smirked at her. "Games are fun, Leese. Think of life as that. A game. I like games. I always win."

Lisa stared at him. For some reason, insurmountable fear was rising in her throat.

"In fact, think of it as a game of poker. Except this time, the item at stake isn't money. It's your life, your kids' life, and your dad's life."

Lisa clapped a hand over her mouth to hold in her cry, shaking from head to toe.

"Let's set a few ground rules, shall we? I'm in charge of you, the kids, and basically everything you three do. You try to get cute or runaway again, and the kids are placed in the hands of my super-fun associate and you'll be wishing I had killed you," his voice held such a malice but his eyes remained calm and cool.

Lisa finally spoke, her voice cracking. "How-how could you do this? Your own children, your wife...and here you are threatening to kill them. I thought you said you loved me, and that no one would ever hurt me again." Her voice fell to a whisper.

"Leese," Jackson sighed. "Get over it. You should know by now exactly what my intentions are. Kids don't spur any sort of emotion in me at all. Sure, I grant them a little leeway, but I won't hesitate to use them as bait. As for you, I've told you before, it's more important to me that I be with you than if you're happy. And as for no one hurting you, I don't want to hurt you unless you give me reason to."

Lisa shook her head, dumbfounded, and struck Jackson as hard as she could on the face. "You're a monster," she whispered. "I don't know how I could be as stupid as to think I loved you."

Jackson seized her wrist. "I think it's time for you to go to the bathroom."

"I don't think so, Jack," she said vehemously.

He glared at her, his hand squeezing tighter on her hand. She kept her stare into his crystalline eyes until finally the pressure on her wrist was so great she thought it would snap off. Lisa gasped and Jackson pulled her to her feet.

"Mommy's not feeling well, kids," he told the twins, shooting a sidelong glance at Lisa. "We'll be right back."

Jackson yanked her roughly to his side and steered her down the aisle. Lisa looked desperately to the eyes of the other passengers, but not one of them met her gaze.

"They don't care, Leese," Jackson muttered as he opened the door to the lavatory and shoved her inside.

Lisa's head knocked against the wall as Jackson locked the door behind them.

"Don't you think this is getting slightly old, Jack?" she spat at him. "You need a new routine."

He grabbed her roughly by the hair. "Don't worry, Leese. I have one. It's interesting, but you'll have to wait until we're on the ground." Lisa screamed but Jackson slapped a hand over her mouth. He pulled a knife from his suit pocket.

_How did he get that on here?_ She wondered. Then she realized that she didn't want to know. Jackson slammed her against the wall and pressed it to her neck.

"Now, you probably should know that all your little violent outburst earned you was a little playtime for the twins with my associate," he whispered harshly, pressing the blade deeper. The blood became a mixture with her tears. "I decided that we're going to go on a little trip. You'll find out where. It's a surprise."

Lisa finally wrenched her head away and searched his eyes. "What happened to you?"

"I just realized that I'm the one with the upper hand, and you shouldn't be controlling me," he sneered. "I want you, now get over it."

"Now," he said, finally putting the knife back in his suit jacket. "Hopefully we won't have to have another little discussion. I trust you've learned your lesson, and you should know that anymore of your violent outbursts will be harshly punished. Do you understand?"

Lisa glared at him, but nodded ever so slightly.

Jackson grinned at her as he began to open the door. But as the heavy metal slider began to open, something she sad almost inaudibly stopped him in his tracks.

"You're just like your father."


	7. Quickly Losing Control

1"You're just like your father."

Jackson kicked the door shut and instantly was at her throat.

"What did you say?" he growled. His eyes flashed.

"You heard me," she whispered. Jackson's temper raged and he squeezed Lisa's neck so hard she collapsed to the floor.

"Yes, I did," he whispered as he picked up her unconscious body and carried her from the bathroom.

"Few too many to drink, I'm afraid," he chuckled to the other passengers as he gently set Lisa in her seat.

Lisa awoke with an incredibly sore throat two hours later. The plane was jolting around as they made their landing.

"Morning, sunshine," Jackson adjusted his suit as the plan rolled to a stop. "Sleep well? Hope so. You'll need your strength."

Lisa didn't answer him, just moved to unbuckle the children.

"So, what, after all this you're going to give me the silent treatment?" Jackson muttered. "Leese, I'm surprised, that's not like you."

Lisa still didn't answer this remark, just took the twins' hands and began to guide them down the aisle. Jackson followed with the bags.

As they entered the terminal, Jackson lost his temper and roughly took hold of her arm. Lisa resisted the strong urge to slap him.

"We don't need the drama," he threatened her by squeezing her arm tightly. Lisa cried out and held her children. They made a sound somewhat like a whimper and Jacob spoke, his voice meek and afraid.

"Daddy, why did you hurt Mommy?" he whispered. Jackson glared at him.

"Let it be a lesson," he said curtly. "I'm in charge, now, not Mommy. You do what I say, or suffer the punishment." The twins nodded tearfully.

"Don't you dare discipline my kids," Lisa snarled at him as he steered her to the car.

"My kids, too, Leese," he shot back.

"The only thing they share with you is genes," she responded, holding them tightly in her other arm.

"Oh, that hurts," he held a hand over his heart in mock pain as they were seated in the Trailblazer. Lisa buckled in the kids and herself.

"I swear to God, Jack, if you touch them-"

"You'll what?" Jackson mocked her, taking off down the highway. "Stab a pen in my throat, a heel in my leg? I'm scared."

"Yeah, but I won," she whispered.

They soon arrived at the beach house where an unfamiliar black Sedan was parked out front. Jackson entered the house without unlocking it and Lisa saw a man sitting at the table.

"Lisa, kids," Jackson said, gesturing to the man. "This is my friend, Dougan. Kids, you're going to stay with him for the next two weeks."

The twins didn't even bother asking why, just huddled against their mother.

"Time to go, Leese," Jackson snarled, seizing her arm. The children still clung to her knees. Dougan rolled his eyes.

"No," she whispered tearfully.

"What was that, Lisa?" Jackson asked her, eyes flashing.

"I'm not leaving them," she said defiantly.

"Lisa, your children will benefit more from your obedience," Jackson snarled, once again roughly grabbing her arm.

Lisa reached out, trying to hold her children, but Jackson was pulling her out the door. They cried out to her and Lisa kicked at Jackson.

"You bastard!" she screamed frantically at him when he shut the door behind him. She punched at his chest, at his head, anywhere. "I hate you, you fucking asshole! Go to hell!"

Her frantic cries didn't diminish as Jackson sighed and pushed her in the backseat of the car. Lisa's screams turned to gasping sobs as he began to drive. By the time they'd left Miami, her sobs had turned to tearfully muttered prayer.

"Holy Mary, Mother of God..." she finally dozed off as the sun set behind them.


	8. Lisa's James Bond Move

1"Wake up, Lisa," Jackson's hands shaking her woke her up.

Lisa opened her eyes and sat up. Her whole body ached as she looked at Jackson's face.

"Burger King drive thru," he said simply. "Eat something."

"I'm not hungry," she said bitterly. Jackson sighed.

"Suit yourself."

"Where are we?" she finally asked as he pulled away.

"Just outside of Jacksonville," Jackson answered. Lisa laughed at his arrogance of stopping in a town with his name. The clock read 11:42 PM.

As they drove on through the night, Lisa's mind began to form a plan. She looked for the child safety lock on her door, but saw none. Then she looked to the dashboard and saw his cell phone lying there. She bit her lip and looked out the window. A sign for a police station flashed. Now all she could do was wait.

A mile down the road, Lisa was ready. She quickly yanked his phone from the dash and threw open her door, jumping out. Jackson cursed loudly as she fell to the gravel. The rocks ripped her skirt and cut sharply into her knee. Lisa cried out but kept running, her heels not an issue. Jackson slowed the car and turned around. She saw the headlights behind her about a yard back, but she ran as fast as she could into the big stone police building ahead of her.

Lisa threw open the door and screamed, "Help me, please!"

All eyes in the station turned to her. "A man is trying to kill me and my family, please help!" Her voice was edged with tears as an officer walked over.

"He's out on the road, he has a knife and probably a gun, too, please," she cried. The officer sat her down.

"Calm down, ma'am," he told her, taking in her ragged appearance. "What does he look like, name, any other important features?"

Lisa breathed in and nodded. "He has long brown hair, creepy blue eyes, kind of tall, I'm not sure exactly how high...he's skinny, and his name is Jackson Rippner."

The officer turned to the others and yelled, "Rippner's out there somewhere, get him!" About seven officers ran outside to their cars.

"Ma'am, I'm going to need your name and some other information about what happened," he told her, pulling out a notepad.

"My...name's Lisa Reisert, well Rippner-" the officer cut her off.

"Lisa Reisert? The one who was terrorized on that plane five years ago?"

Lisa took a shaky breath and nodded.

"Sweetheart, what happened?"

Lisa took one more gulp of air and began her story.

An hour later, the officer sat shaking his head.

"We're trying to catch him, but for now I think it would be best if you stayed here tonight," he told her. "You can go home tomorrow."

"Please, sir, my family-" she said weakly.

"We already have it taken care of," he told her. "We've sent units to watch your father, mother, and Cynthia for tonight and a team is headed over to retrieve your kids."

Lisa nodded, but still was panicky.

"By the way, I'm Officer Matthews." Lisa nodded gratefully as he led her to the bathroom to get washed up.

Lisa left the bathroom and reentered the lobby. Everything was quiet.

"Officer Matthews?" she called. No answer. She turned around to see dozens of bodies littering the floor. She screamed, and a hand grabbed her. Her face looked into Jackson's.

"They're dead, Leese," he said mockingly, holding up a bloody knife. "You can't win...I want you...you can't beat me..."

Lisa screamed and woke up, her body shaking in a cold sweat.

Officer Matthews came over to her and wrapped a blanket around her shoulders. "Lisa, are you okay? Your kids are here. The assassin at your house seems to have disappeared."

Athena and Jacob ran up to her, their tears all becoming one.

Lisa was escorted back to Miami by Officer Matthews to meet her father. As soon nas she saw him, she collapsed into his arms.

"Daddy," she whispered. He held her tightly.

"It's okay, Leese," he whispered. "He's gone."

Lisa smiled at him as Officer Matthews left. "Call me if you need anything," he told her.

Lisa finally realized how exhausted she was, and, leaving the children with their grandfather, trudged up to her old room.

She missed high school. At the time, she'd thought it a living hell, but now she realized what hell really was. Lisa fingered her old clothes, her pink bedspread, and sighed. She reached into her closet for her hockey stick, just in case, and realized it was gone. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Looking for this?"


	9. Refuge

1"Looking for this?" a voice said behind her. Lisa gasped and whirled around to see Jackson sitting on her desk chair twirling a hockey stick in his long fingers. She made a break for the door but Jackson moved his body in front of it and held her tightly against his chest. He held up a knife and covered her mouth.

"Be quiet and you won't get hurt," he muttered, guiding her to the window.

Lisa still kicked strongly at him and made muffled noises, but they were already on her balcony. Jackson guided her down the steps and into his car. He pushed her in and slammed the door before she could jump out. They moved down the driveway and Lisa still tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge.

"Nice try, Leese," Jackson grinned smugly at her. "After the last stunt you pulled I installed child safety locks."

"No, no, no," she cried, pounding on the window. "How did you get away?"

Jackson snorted. "The Florida state police is not that hard to outrun, Leese."

Lisa gave up and leaned against the window. "So who are you threatening now, Jack? What's your master plan?"

"No one except you, Lisa," Jackson smiled. "This time it's just you, me, and my little game."

Lisa called his bluff. "I'm not scared of you. You won't kill me."

Jackson sighed. "Lisa, do not underestimate my capabilities."

There was a few moments silence until Lisa finally asked quietly, "Where are we going?"

Jackson paused. "South Carolina."

A few minutes later he spoke again. "You know, it didn't have to be like this."

Lisa narrowed her eyes. "Yeah, you didn't have to be a dick."

"No. You could just allow me to be me," he corrected her.

"How could you?" Lisa's words accompanied a choked cry. "I...thought...I cared about you, I thought you'd changed. I started to understand part of why you were you...started to think you were human... I thought you cared about the kids," her head fell to her hands. Her voice fell to a whisper. "I thought you said you never lied."

"I did say that, but how do you know I wasn't lying then?" he counterattacked.

"You know, I wouldn't even be surprised if you made up all that bullshit about your parents to get me off your ass," she spat at him. Jackson's grip tightened on the steering wheel as he jerked the car to a stop and slammed her head against the window.

"Don't you ever. Say that again," he growled through his teeth. Lisa clenched her jaw.

"If you don't like it, don't dish it out," she replied.

Jackson released her with a jerk and began driving again. A few miles down the road, Lisa spoke.

"Why do you want me so much if all you ever do is beat me up, threaten me, and get annoyed at what I do or say?" she questioned.

Jackson glanced at her. "That's what I like about you. Your brains."

"What's in South Carolina?" she shot at him.

"Headquarters."

"But you drove to work in Florida," she replied.

"Those were state headquarters. These are national," he explained. "My boss wants to meet you."

"Did they hear...what happened with Jed?" she asked.

"They heard he was murdered but figured it was an unhappy customer," he smirked at her.

"I thought Jed started up the business," her eyebrows furrowed.

"No," he told her. A lie, she realized. "He started up the Florida branch after training with national."

"So you lied to me again," she rolled her eyes.

"No, I left out information," he grinned his cocky grin at her.

By the time they'd reached Georgia, Lisa was frustrated. "Can I at least call my father?" she pleaded.

Jackson ran a hand through his hair and chewed his lip. "Fine. But if you give any information on our whereabouts, Lisa, and so help me god-"

Lisa held up a hand. "Whatever, Jack, I just want to tell him I'm okay...well, not dead," Jackson glared at her and tossed her a cell phone.

Lisa quickly dialed in his number. It picked up after the first ring.

"Hello?" a frantic voice said. Her father.

"Daddy, it's Lisa," her voice cracked.

"It's Lisa!" she heard him cry, and then dozens of footsteps. The police, she thought.

"Honey, where are you?" he asked. Suddenly Lisa was struck with an idea.

"I can't say," she said pointedly, hoping beyond hope that her father would pick up.

"You can't-he's sitting right next to you," Joe realized.

"Uh, yeah," Lisa urged him.

"In...the car," he guessed. Lisa said yes.

"In...Florida?" he took a shot.

"Um, no," she answered him. Jackson glared at her suspiciously.

"Georgia," he asked again. Before Lisa could affirm, Jackson ripped the phone from her hand and jerked the car to a stop.

"Hi, Joe?" Jackson said. "Yeah, it's me, just wanted to let you know that if you keep trying to play these little guessing games with your little princess here, she will suffer. Oops, guess what, she just lost. Game over." He clicked off the phone and before Lisa could react he had slammed her head against the dash and she was engulfed in darkness.

Alright, I plan on putting out the finale soon...the end, finito...tears everyone LOL...but I do plan on making more fanfics...for one of them I am considering using real characters, so if you would like to be a character please email me or simply message me and I'll try to put you in...okay then..


	10. Finale

1Lisa awoke three hours later with a massive headache. Jackson had pulled to a stop outside of a shabby-looking hotel and was opening her door. He tried to pick her up to carry her inside, but she shoved him hard in the chest.

"I can walk, you know," she hissed at him, standing up. Once on her feet, however, she realized that this fact was debatable as her head spun and her knees weakened. Jackson led the way to the building and up the stairs to room 4080.

"Ah, the irony," he grinned at her. She didn't look at him, just marched past him into the room. Lisa picked up one of the booklets and looked at it.

Pine Row, South Carolina.

That was near the south, she realized.

Jackson shut the door and locked it.

"Now, go wash up and then I'd advise you to get some sleep," he said, collapsing into the one rickety chair.

"One bed," she said simply.

"Either that or the floor," he told her. "It's me or the cockroaches."

Lisa didn't say anything, just pulled a pillow from the bed and laid down on the floor.

"I'll take the bugs," she said before setting down her head.

The next morning, Lisa's entire body was aching as Jackson pulled her roughly to her feet.

"Ready to find out why you're here?" he snarled, twisting her around to face him. "Ready to play the game?"

Lisa made a weak noise and tried to pull away but he just twisted her arm behind her back. Lisa cried out.

"See, I haven't kept any of my promises, not to you, or myself," his mouth was close to her face. "I promised you that you'd go to work with me, that never happened. I promised myself that I'd get revenge, and this is all tying in nicely to my little plan."

Lisa's tears fell in a torrent as she felt her arm would snap off. He finally released her and she stumbled away, hitting the wall.

They left the hotel with Lisa staring hopelessly out the car window. She knew she'd angered him, and it scared her that his personality could switch so quickly.

Jackson pulled up an hour later in front of a concrete building. He straightened his suit jacket and hair and helped Lisa out. She stared at him. Was he...nervous?

"Don't do anything cute, Leese," he took her purse and locked it in the car.

"You need a new line," she spat at him. He grabbed her arm and roughly guided her to the door, taking what looked like a credit card and swiping it through the slot. The door opened and Jackson pulled Lisa inside.

The entry hall was inornate except for several doors on either side. The white paint was chipped and peeling. A man came out of one and acknowledged Jackson.

"Rippner," before entering another one. There was no second glance at Lisa. Were hostages normal here? She wondered.

Jackson steered her up to a door and knocked loudly. A woman opened it and let them in. She nodded politely to Jackson but when her gaze fell on Lisa her eyes changed to an almost sympathetic look. Lisa had no time to ponder this, though, because in the next moment Jackson was dragging her through a door leading to another room. He knocked again and entered.

A man stood in the room, an older man, probably in his late fifties, with graying black hair. He wore a suit similar to Jackson's, but with a tie.

"Mr. Rippner," he acknowledged Jackson.

"Mr. Miller," Jackson nodded at him and Lisa pulled herself from his grasp. The man laughed as Jackson scowled at her.

"Miss Reisert, I assume," the man chuckled. Lisa figured Jackson hadn't filled his boss in on their chaste marriage. "You were right about her, Rippner."

Lisa looked around for a pen or something of the sort.

"So, Rippner," Mr. Miller reached to his desk for a file. "This is your next assignment. I assume you've told her?"

"Told me what?" Jackson looked at the floor. Lisa backed against the desk.

"You didn't tell her? Rippner, this is important, dammit, and your new partner can't be left in the dark!"

Lisa paused. Partner?

"No way in hell am I working here," she stuttered.

"You have to," they both sighed.

"Why?" she questioned.

"Because, all the people used in jobs were supposed to be eliminated," Jackson spat. "You're lucky you have good aim. So, you work for us, or you die."

Lisa tripped backwards a little bit and finally her hand found what it was looking for. She tucked the ballpoint pen into the side of her skirt.

She didn't say anything again until they were back in the car and Jackson started driving again.

"Where are we going now?" she muttered.

"Back to the Lux," he told her. "We're getting Keefe again, only this time you are going to help."

Lisa shook her head in disbelief. "No, no, no..."

"Yes, and it's only him this time, but if you try any heroics again they all go," he threatened.

The drive back to Miami took a day, and Lisa didn't speak to Jackson the whole time. They finally pulled up in front of the Lux.

"No, we don't have a good a plan this time," he told her quietly. "So what we're going to do is get you to take him outside to talk to him, since he thinks you're an absolute angel, and then I'll take care of the rest. Security shouldn't be a problem since he's retired, get it?"

Lisa nodded. "I have just one question, though."

He sighed. "What?" Lisa swiftly pulled the pen from where she'd stored it and jammed it in his throat before he could speak.

"How do you plan on doing that with a hole in your trachea?" she asked before running away.

Lisa was glad that the hotel was so close to her home, less than a mile. She ran until she reached her doorstep and quickly locked the front door behind her. She yelled to her dad.

"Dad!" she cried as he raced in, surprised and relieved. "We need to go, come on!"

Joe's eyes held a questioning look but he nodded and Lisa grabbed the twins. Before they could reach the garage door, Lisa realized she'd forgotten the keys and raced back into the kitchen to grab them.

"Shit," she cursed as she entered the kitchen.

"Don't you ever die?" she cried at Jackson as she chucked a plate as hard as she could at him. He dodged it easily and she continued running into the garage.

Joe and the twins were backed against the car by one of Jackson's associates, who inevitably had been parked down the street. She recognized him as Dougan.

"Leave...them alone," she panted desperately. "I'll-I'll go, just please don't hurt them."

Jackson knocked her to the floor and then pulled her up by her hair to face him. Lisa screamed and the twins buried their faces in Joe's chest. Jackson withdrew his knife.

"Now, Leese," he breathed into her ear. "I'd hate to hurt you in front of the kids, but you haven't been behaving..." Lisa noticed the rasp in his voice and looked at his neck where he'd pulled his collar up to cover the new wound.

The knife grazed Lisa's neck and pressed down hard on her old scar. She cried out as it opened up again.

"Now, let's try this again," he told her, beginning to drag her towards the door. It was only then that Lisa noticed Jacob was missing. Joe looked at her in panic and attempted to pull away from the assassin but he knocked his head against the car and passed out.

"Going to behave now, Lisa?" Jackson let his grip slide to her hair and he dragged her, Lisa feeling like her scalp was being ripped off. Before she could scream, Jacob kicked Jackson squarely in the back and cried, "Leave Mommy alone!" Jackson fell and dropped Lisa in shock and she scrambled away, grabbing the bat they stored in the garage. She slammed it against the assassin's head and he fell in shock to the floor next to her father. Athena ran to Jacob.

Lisa swung the bat at Jackson but missed. He lunged out to grab Jacob, angry, but his hand found Athena instead. She screamed as Jackson pressed the knife to her tiny throat. Lisa gasped.

"Give it up, Leese," he sneered. "You can't win."

Lisa stumbled to the assassin's body and grabbed the gun. She pointed it directly at Jackson.

"L-let her go," she stuttered. "Now."

"You won't kill me," he laughed. "You don't have the gump-"

Lisa shot and the bullet flew to his leg. He winced and Athena scrambled away, but Lisa didn't drop the gun. She heard the sirens far away.

"What do you think of human capabilities now?" she asked. He stared at her, and she stared back. His eyes held something like remorse. Her memories played in her head like an old movie.

_It's all yours._

She gulped.

_You're beautiful..._

_Just wanted you to know, I love you..._

Lisa let the tears slide down her face. Jackson breathed in a shallow breath. Then her face hardened.

_You can't win..._

_Your dad dies..._

_You know what I think?_

_Never lied to you, Leese.._

_Male driven logic..._

Lisa looked at Athena and Jacob. Their eyes threatened tears as they clung together.

_One shot and he's gone forever, _she told herself.

_I got it..._

_We'll talk again..._

_I can't have you..._

_They rock..._

_One shot, _Lisa thought.

_Nice try._

_One simple phone call..._

_That's what I told them...before I killed them._

Lisa closed her eyes to avoid seeing those crystalline pools...

_Jack the Ripper._

And shot. It was finally over. She collapsed to the ground as Jackson drew his last ragged breath.

"Still...love you," he said as he finally closed his eyes.

It was over, she told herself. Her kids ran to her. Jack's dead, and you...you are free.

The End


End file.
